Platinum Underwriters lining up

China Telecom price on Wednesday, to trade next week

By

SteveGelsi

NEW YORK (CBS.MW) -- Platinum Underwriters will make another attempt his week at going public after the reinsurance unit of St. Paul Cos. bumped its $675 million initial public offering off the calendar in September.

The IPO from the company is expected to price on Monday and trade on Tuesday.

Meanwhile, a hefty $3.3 billion initial public offering from China Telecom is moving closer to its debut. The Asian telecom giant is expected to set its offering price on Wednesday and begin trading on Nov. 6.

Despite recent gains by the broader market, investors are still tentative at best toward most initial public offerings.

A deal from Wynn Resorts
WYNN, -1.34%
managed to make it out into the public market on Friday, but it hasn't been received very warmly. The stock has stayed close to its $13 price, although it did edge up 2 cents to $13.03 on Monday.

Following Montpelier Re

Platinum is tempting markets again on the heels of a successful debut of Montpelier Re
MRH
earlier this month.

The reinsurance firm broke the longest IPO drought since 1975 when it debuted Oct. 10 at $20 per share. It's now trading at nearly $26.

Last month, Platinum Underwriters
PTP, -14.29%
which is owned by St. Paul Cos.
SPC, +0.22%
trimmed its price to $22- to $23 per share and shrank the size of the IPO to 30 million shares from 34 million.

What was once an IPO worth up to $920 million has now dwindled to a maximum of $690 million.

One boost to the IPO was a move by Renaissance RE to set plans to buy 3.96 million shares of Platinum Underwriters.

Platinum Underwriters specializes on property and casual insurance with net premiums of $573 million in the first six months of the year, up from $488 million last year.

Platinum Underwriters' also plans to simultaneously offer $125 million in convertible preferred debt, via Merrill Lynch, along with

China Telecom

With a hefty $3.3 billion in proceeds, a bevy of underwriters are taking part in China Telecom's offering in Hong Kong and New York.

Chicago Merc grows profit

The Chicago Mercantile Exchange
CME, -0.68%
which is planning an initial public offering, reported third-quarter net income of $19.4 million, or 65 cents per share, compared to $ 17.8 million, or 60 cents per share, in the year-ago period.

Excluding a one-time charge, third-quarter net income would have been $27.6 million, an increase of 55 percent. Revenue rose to $125.2 million, up from $95.3 million. Average daily volume exceeded 2.4 million contracts, up from nearly 1.7 million last year.

Last week, the company set an estimated price level of $31 to $34 and set its number of shares at 3 million as its $102 million IPO moved closer to its expected debut with underwriter Morgan Stanley
MWD, +0.43%

Cosi sets IPO terms

New York-based sandwich shop chain Cosi Inc.
COSI
said it plans to offer 5.6 million shares at $8 to $10 each in a bid to raise up to $56 million with underwriter William Blair.

The terms signal that the IPO is moving along and that Cosi is likely planning a road show to investors in the near future.

Impac Medical Systems sets terms

Mountain View, Calif.-based Impac Medical Systems
IMPC, +5.96%
a maker of information technology for cancer care, said it plans to offer 2.2 million shares at $15 to $17 each in a bid to raise nearly $40 million with Thomas Weisel Partners.

Diller snubs IPO prospects

Barry Diller, founder of USA Networks and now a major force at Vivendi Universal
V, -1.12%
threw cold water on the idea of spinning off the company's film, music and TV assets in an initial public offering.

Quoted by the French daily Le Figaro, Diller said he wants the entertainment assets to remain a key part of Vivendi's business.

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